Sunday, March 29, 2009

I've scanned my stitching progress photo for this weekbecause there is no sunshine today so using the camerawould be a waste of time. I finished the Sparrowsyesterday and am quite pleased with this square. Lovelylayout, and the birdhouse is quite charming.

I made a small start on the next square which will beCardinals. It would have been a bigger start but anentire flock (herd?? crowd?? pod??) of frogs descendedon me while I was innocently minding my own businessand they made me miscount in not one, not two, but inthree separate places. I'm nothing if not consistent.Anyways, I had to rip out a section, gnashing my teethas I went, and so now I'm ready to proceed with morecaution.

As for the lack of sunshine today, well, it is almostApril so those infamous showers are bound to showup sooner or later. It's bucketing down here rightnow, and the grand poobahs at the weather networkwere even mentioning thunderstorms yesterday,although there are no signs of those as of yet.

Yesterday was the exact opposite of today. It wasclear skies and brilliant, wonderful, welcomesunshine for most of the day. I went out for awalk around 10:00 am and before I left thehouse was dithering about which coat/jacketto wear. Since it would be a brisk walk Ipulled out my spring jacket for the first timethis year and headed out. DH was alreadyoutside raking the front yard (ground in thebackyard is still too soft to rake yet) and hewas wearing his spring jacket too. It turnedout that my jacket choice was spot on for theday and the weather.

In the afternoon we took the old car out for arun and were out for over an hour. Itwas lovely sitting in the car with the warmsunshine pouring in and gently toasting us.DH was even kind enough to stop in Acton atthe Needle Gnome on our way home againwhere I picked up some needles, another setof Q-snaps and one of those small plastic projectboxes that I use to keep the threads for a singleproject.

Last night DH and I observed Earth Hour by gatheringlanterns and candles in the dining room and settlingin for a game of Cribbage to wile away the time. It wasquite pleasant. Don't know what the cats thought of itall, but they either napped (Rupert) or sat in the frontwindow and kept an eye on the neighbourhood (Phoebe)until the time was up.

I have written here before about the House of Night seriesby P.C. and Kristin Cast. This week I read the fifth book inthe series, Hunted, which came out this month. As with thefour previous books this one continues the story of ZoeyRedbird who continues to fight the darkness and evil whichthreatens her school, friends and humanity. Speciallychosen and blessed by the goddess Nix, Zoey must use herintuition, her goddess given gift to control the five elements,and her sense of right and wrong to fight against the threatof a world wide war, vampires against humans.

These Young Adult novels are compulsive reading. I amalways eager to find out what's going to happen next asZoey must lead her small group of fledgling Vampiresagainst the power and allure of a god long imprisonedin the earth now free and seeking to subjugate theVampires and humans of the world. Zoey is a greatheroine because she's not perfect. She is a teenager,unsure of herself and apt to make mistakes. But shehas a loyal heart and a strong will to do what's right.

I find Zoey to be much more multifaceted then BellaSwan and more interesting to get to know. So, ifyou've read the Twilight series and enjoyed it perhapsyou should try the House of Night series and seewhat I mean.

I also read the latest (I think... it came out last year)novel by Cathy Reichs, called Devil Bones. Again itfeatures Temp Brennan in her roll as Forensic anthro-pologist for Charlotte, North Carolina. This timeTemp is called to the location of a house underrenovation in the city where a secret room has beendiscovered with all the appearances of witchcraft,or devil worship or voodoo, complete with humanremains. A day later the headless body of a teenageboy is found by a nearby lake and a zealous preacherturned politician begins a rabid campaign againstthe perceived threats of witches, and of the liberal lawsof the country that allow the practicing of suchbeliefs, as well as the laws that seem to allow violentcriminals to walk free.

The forensics is fascinating, and Reichs is goodwith her explanations, the characters are rich andvividly drawn, and the dry, often humorous obser-vations of Temperance Brennan are a delight.Brennan's personal life, ex-husband, self absorbeddaughter, possibly ex-lover, and a never endingbattle against her addiction to alcohol, adds tothe story and makes Temperance live on the page.She is quite the feisty, smart, big heartedcharacter who doesn't suffer fools gladly and whowants to see justice for the victims of crime butstill has compassion for those she meets duringthe course of the investigations she participates in.I love her, and admire her, flaws and all.

DH is at church, the cats are snoozing around me hereand it's almost time for lunch. The laundry is waitingas well. Oh joy! I hope to go for another walk whenthe rain lets up a bit, and perhaps putting needle(carefully) to thread will also be an option this after-noon. We shall see.

Thanks for visiting and hope you have a wonderfulweek with lots of time to stitch and hopefully somenice Spring weather.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

At long last Spring!!! Spring arrived at 7:44 on Fridaymorning and was greeted with joy and relief by those ofus who've had more then enough of Winter, thank youvery much.

Of course just because there's a time and a date on thecalendar that says Spring Arrives it doesn't mean thatthe weather outside suddenly shifts from Winter blahsto Spring brilliance all at once. It's still cold out, andit's rainy and it's grey. But the crocuses are poking theirheads out of the ground and bravely facing the elementsand the daffodils are not far behind. The Robins arehanging around the yard and singing their hearts out,and the day time temperatures no longer have a minussign in front of them.

So we're heading in the right direction, with the understanding that there will most probably be a few dayswhen we'll seem to slip back into Winter's Ways, butat least we'll have the comfort of knowing that it's atemporary set back that will soon pass, and becomenothing more than a memory.

In other words....I'm not packing the boots, shovelsand parkas away just yet.

I have been thoroughly enjoying my latest obsessionwith Prairie Schooler's Prairie Birds. I finished theHummingbird on Thursday and immediately startedthe next design that I decided to stitch for this projectwhich is the Sparrow. I know, Sparrows are not themost colourful of birds, but the overall design appealsto me and the bird house featured in this one is myfavourite of the lot. And lets face it, Sparrows are everywhere, and they're such determined little survivorsand scavengers, whether it be in the country, or inthe heart of the city. So they deserve a little respect.

I have to say a great big Thank You to everyone wholeft comments over the course of the past week aboutmy two finishes and my framing of them. I reallyappreciate the encouragement and the support.

In celebration of the arrival of Spring (yeah, sure) I wentberserk .... nuts ..... crazy ..... I ordered some new booksfrom Indigo/Chapters online service. All but one are byauthors that I've read before and thoroughly enjoyed. Deanna Raybourn's is a Victorian mystery series, P.C.and Kristen Cast's is a Young Adult Vampire series,Marilynne Robinson is a new to me author, Jodi Picoultwrites riveting, thought provoking fiction, MichelleMoran writes historical fiction which centers on thelives of the Pharaoh's of Egypt, and Anne Easter Smithwrites historical fiction centering on the era of thePlantagenet's and the Tudor's in England. Can't waitto dive into these.

This week I read Maeve Binchy's latest novel Heart andSoul. I love Binchy's writing and have been collectingand devouring her books for a few years now. When Iread a Maeve Binchy book it's so easy to slip into the storyand develope a relationship with the characters in it.She has a way of writing that convays the essentialelements of each character clearly and with compassionand humour.

Her last five or six books have all been linked by thecharacters appearing in them. The focus may changefrom book to book but you'll always run into peopleyou met in Quentin's or Scarlet Feather or WhitethornWoods. So reading her books is a bit like coming home.But you don't have to know anything about her previousbooks to be able to enjoy the latest one.

This book centers around the lives of the doctors, nursesand other staff and patients who attend a heart clinic inDublin. The relationships and the friendships thatdevelope and the joys and the sorrows and the life'slessons learnt that result. As always, when finishedreading a Binchy book, I find it hard to put down andwalk away and leave the characters within behind.I become so attached to them while reading and theybecome so real to me. It's hard to have to wait forthe next book from Maeve Binchy because of that.

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I'm writing this post a bit early this week (Saturdaynight instead of Sunday morning) because tomorrowI'm going over to have lunch with Mom and a visitfor the afternoon. So I'll be doing a few choresaround the house in the morning, or at least that'sthe plan.

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Weekends go by too fast!! This morning DH andI went to a few local shops to pick up some specialthings for lunch. A friend of ours who was reallygood about visiting my Mom when she was in hospitaland who loaned her a television to use when shewas in the rehab center came to visit us today forlunch and to pick up the TV that we've had here sinceMom came home. I wanted to make a really nice lunchfor Jacquie after all that she'd done for my Momand I think it worked out well. We had a nicevisit and then she left here and went over to see myMom.

I spent a couple of hours after Jacquie leftstitching and then I went across the street to myneighbours for tea and a visit. It was nice to beable to walk across the street without having topull on a pair of boots and a heavy coat first.Not that it's warm enough to go without for anylength of time yet, but to just run across thestreet was fine.

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Was not the skiing accident and subsiquentdeath of Natasha Richardson a terribly sadthing last week?? She and Liam Neeson weresuch a lovely and loving couple and he looksso berefit and lost now. My heart aches forhim and for their two young sons.

Not an exciting post this week. But I'll end this postwith a picture of sweet Phoebe hiding under the bedand waiting for the opportunity to nip at my toes asI changed the sheets last Sunday. Cheeky baby.

Hope you all have a wonderful week, with lots ofquality stitching time and hopefully some nice,welcome Spring weather. Take care.

Sunday, March 15, 2009

You all are going to have to forgive me, 'cause today I'm goingto be insufferably proud of myself. I can't help it. I'm gonnaspend a good portion of this blog bragging. I'm just letting youknow ahead of time.

I have not one but two finishes to tell you about. My firstfinishes for this year! And not only did I finish these twoprojects, but I also framed them myself as well!!! Really!!I have proof! I have pictures!!

I've never tried my hand at framing anything by myselfbefore. I did frame three of my stitching pieces with thehelp of a friend a year ago, but she did most of the workand it was with matting and a special cutting machine forthat, and sticky matting board (which I'll never use ever,ever again!) and things got really complicated. The resultswere fine for a first attempt, but not spectacular.

Funnily enough, it was exactly one year ago this weekendthat we had that day of framing, and here I am one yearlater doing my own thing, and mighty proud of it. I thinkI've warned you about that already.

So here's my first finish: My Needle's Work by LittleHouse Needlework stitched with Crescent Coloursthreads on 28 count fabric.

And finish number two: November Window by PrairieSchooler, stitched with DMC threads on 28 countfabric.

DH took me to Michaels yesterday to pick up a fewthings and at that time I had it in mind to pick up acouple of frames, and some materials to try andframe these two pieces. I picked out two frames thatstruck my fancy, and a sheet of foam core and twopackages of artists canvas panels which were theright sizes for these two finishes and the pictureframes.

Once home I set up the ironing board and gatheredmy materials and set to work. Now I am not apatient person. I can't fuss and fiddle with somethingfor long periods of time until it's absolutely perfect.I want to whip the project together in no time, andit better be perfect at once, or else! But it did take metime to do what had to be done and in some ways Iwas rather surprised at how well it went.

I used the lacing method for framing and expectedthat part of the process to be the most fiddly andfrustrating. However I was pleasantly surprisedby how relatively easy it turned out to be, even forme with my ten huge thumbs (on each hand).I did refer to a bit of on line instruction beforetackling this project and used tutorials supplied by several stitchers and/or stitching sites. I needto do more research however so that next time I cando an even better, more perfect job.

Being the genius that I am I decided to work on thebigger piece first, instead of the smaller, easier tohandle one. It took a couple of tries before I got thelacing done correctly but I like this method a lot betterthen using that awful tacky mounting board. Easier toadjust your fabric when needed and it doesn't pull andfray your threads.

Things I need to work on: I am not mathematicallyinclined and picking out picture frames that would fitmy stitching didn't quite turn out as well as I wouldhave liked for my smaller PS piece. The bottom boarderdoes not show because the frame's opening is too small.Fortunately the boarder is not fancy, just a plain straightline, so that's not too big of a deal.

Picture frames may not be the best choice for framingstitching because the fabric and the board are so thickit makes putting the back of the frame on very difficult,if not impossible. I had to resort to the handy woman'ssecret weapon...duct tape, to secure the backs of thepicture frames onto the frames. You can't see it fromthe front so I'm not too concerned about that. Live andlearn.

Patience Judy, patience. Take the time to get thepiece centered properly and the border even. If youget too frustrated go and make yourself a cup of teaand relax. Don't plow ahead and regret it later.

I could go on and on (and often do) but basicallythe point of this whole exercise is that I made theattempt, I did pretty good for the first time, and Ilearned a lot. And I'm pumped! I want to do thisagain. But first I need to collect some more pictureframes. And pick up one or two more things tomake the process easier. Any comments, suggestionsor favourite sites for tutorials on this process wouldbe gratefully accepted.

While at Michaels I found hoops to replace my oldand fondly remembered hoop that I mentioned inmy previous post. Thank you all so much for youroffers of hoops from your own stashes, and forinformation on where to find these hoops, andoffers to pick them up for me. You guys areawesome!!! I took my old hoop to work lastMonday and used it during my breaks. But whenI picked it up to pack it in my carrying case atdays end it shattered into multiple pieces andthat was the end of that. So I'm very happy tohave these two new hoops and look forward tomany long and happy years stitching with them.

I also got a bit of stash from Stitching Bits and Bobslast week, including the lovely Threadworx threadsthat are shown in the picture with the new hoops.The two Kit and Bixby charts were in the clearancesale and the Lizzie Kate charts are another set ofseasonal designs that I love to collect. Please notemy wonderful assistant Rupert, the Vanna Whiteof catdom, who is graciously offering his servicesto present these charts to you.

And I have a new start to show you. Well, of course.I have had Prairie Schooler's chart Prairie Birds onmy mind ever since I got it, and I decided to stitchat least four of the birds on this piece of lovely, softvariegated 28 count Jobelan fabric.

Here's the chart. I'm starting with the Hummingbird,and will be doing the Cardinals, and the Juncos andthen I'm not too sure. I may have to stitch a companionto these four because I really do love all of the birdsfeatured in this design. Oh, don't you love a newstart??? I don't want to put this down.

My reading for this week was a new to me author.I was drawn to Kate Morton's book when I foundit mentioned on several book blogging sites anddecided to add it to my collection. I have a friendnamed Kate Morton too, so that is another reason(albeit a kooky one) I noticed and got this book.

The story takes place during the early years of thetwentieth century and begins with the reminisces of98 year old Grace who resides in a nursing home andis nearing the end of her long and eventful life. Sheis haunted by the years that she spent serving as ayoung house maid at the manor house called Riverton.She was fourteen years old when she was hired for theposition, working in the same place where her motherworked before her. The Hartford family are an old,respected family and young Grace is drawn to andfascinated by the Hartford children, David, Hannahand Emmeline.

But Grace's memories of Riverton and the Hartfordfamily are tempered with secrets and a tragedywhich tore the family apart, and her feelings ofguilt relating to her own part in those events. Whena film maker visits her, eager to interview her andhear her reminisces about life at Riverton and theHartford sisters, Graces begins to face her past andthe events that led to the suicide of a famous youngpoet in the presence of the two sisters, and theconsequences of that night.

This story might start out a little slowly for some,as the author spends time introducing hercharacters, their histories and detailing life atRiverton, both upstairs and downstairs. But asthe story progresses and hints are given as tofuture events and the fates of the main charactersI found myself caught up in the narrative andeager to find out the truth of what really happenedon a summer's night in 1924 at Riverton. This isa great read and I enjoyed it thoroughly. I'll bechecking out the other two books that this authorhas published as well.

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The weather here has been absolutely spectacularthis weekend. Sunshine in abundance, and thetemperatures have been around 9 Celsius. CanSpring be too far off now??? Only six days or so.DH is planning on getting the old car out andtaking her for a little spin around the block thisafternoon, just to shake off the cobwebs of Winterand I plan to join them. Laundry is well on it'sway to being done and we'll see if I can muster upsome enthusiasm for housework ... or not.

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DH and I went to the pub (Copper Kettle) fordinner and to celebrate St Patrick's Day last night. He had a pint of Guiness and a bowl of lamb stew,while I had liver and onions, and a lovely piece ofapple cake with hot custard for dessert. Yum!!! There's a new second hand book store opened inGlen Williams, across from the pub. The ownerand her husband were in the pub having dinnerwhen we got there and we talked books for a bit.Guess I'll have to get over there and check theplace out soon.

And on that note I'd best be finishing this epic(not another one!!!) post and getting on with therest of this day.

Hope you are all well and having wonderfulweekends of your own. Thanks so much fordropping by and leaving comments. I enjoythem so much and love visiting your blogsfor inspiration and for fun. Happy stitching!

May love and laughter light your days, and warm your heart and home. May good and faithful friends be yours, wherever you may roam. May peace and plenty bless your world with joy that long endures. May all life's passing seasons bring the best to you and yours!

Sunday, March 08, 2009

Finishes are so close you can taste 'em!! All I have left todo on My Needle's Work is to finish the banner at the topand she's done. But I'm only working on this as my travelproject so she'll have to take another day or two to reachthe end. I don't mind that. I've enjoyed working on herand I'm mostly pleased with how she's turned out.

I'll be rummaging through my stash today I think to pickout my next travel project, to have it ready to go whenneeded. I have no idea what it'll be, which is part of thefun of stash diving and project preparing.

DH took me to Michael's last weekend and I picked up a newtool/gadget to help me with my away from home stitching.I've been getting use to working with this magnifier andlight combo this week, adjusting the hanging cord to getthe best placement to see through and have the light hit thestitching project just right. It helps me quite a bit in seeingwhat I'm stitching clearly. I don't have a problem withseeing the holes in the fabric to put my needle in, but I dohave trouble seeing the crosses clearly as they are stitched.The little light isn't as good as an Ott-Lite's of course and it'sa yellowish light, which isn't as good as the white light of anOtt-Lite, but it'll do.

Getting this thing balanced on my chest in just the right spotwas fun. Once in awhile it would slip down and rest itself ina most .... um .... inappropriate location giving me an evenmore impressive "shelf" then I usually have. Not a goodthing, sitting at your desk at work fumbling to adjust yourchest placement!

Another home stretch project is November Window. Iadded more verse and a few more tree limbs on Fridaynight and this afternoon I plan on working on this somemore. This one may well be a finish by next weekend aswell. Two finishes in one week from me! Can you standit???

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS HOOP????

We all have our favourite X-stitching tools, whether itbe favourite needles, Q-snaps, or whatever. Mine is theitem pictured above. It's a hoop with a spring loadedinner ring that slips easily in and out of any project thatI'm stitching on. Just pinch the blue handles of theinner ring together and it allows the inner ring to slipinto the fabric and the outer ring with ease. I love thishoop! I bought it many years ago during my first stitchingphase and I prefer it over all other types of hoops andframes etc. At least for the smaller projects. The innercircle of the hoop is 7" by 7", which is perfect for stitchingLHN smaller projects, such as the Cottage Garden series,or the scripture series.

But my faithful friend is getting old and the blue plasticframe is chipped and starting to crack. So it'll needreplacing soon. And that's a problem because I haven'tseen it or anything like it anywhere for sale since Istarted stitching again five years ago. I don't know whomade it (there's no name on it anywhere) and I don'teven remember where I bought it.

So I'm posting a picture here in hopes that someone outthere might recognize it and know where I can get another.I guess it's a long shot but I really want to try and findanother of these hoops if I can. Thanks for your help.

Just a bit of stash enhancement this week. Specifically mymonthly Cresent Colours additions from Stitching Bits andBobs. Gorgeous colours, even if the photo doesn't allowthem to shine as much as they do in real life.

There's been book stashing though. My wish list onChapters/Indigo book site has been growing by leapsand bounds as some favourite authors have releasednew books. Plus I've added books that I've seenreviewed and recommended on other book blogger'ssites that sounded like excellent reads.

So the books by Caro Peacock and Kate Morton arenew-to-me authors that I look forward to readingsoon. Peacock's is a murder mystery and Morton'sis a mystery story as well I suppose, both of which takeplace at the end of the nineteenth or beginning ofthe twentieth centuries. The other four books are byauthors that I've read before. Good thing I've mademore room in the library, eh?

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Friday was DH's birthday. Unfortunately he had tospend it attending the funeral of a friend who'd passedaway from Cancer. They use to be in the same youthchoir (the Chancellors) during their teens/earlytwenties, and that group of young people haveremained close ever since. They are now all in theirlate forties or older, with families of their own aroundthe same ages that their parents were when travelingand performing in the choir in churches and town hallsall over southern Ontario. They even recorded a fewrecords (do you all remember records??), performedon the stage at the O'keefe centre in Toronto, andwent on an exchange trip to Holland. From thestories that I've heard over the years they had awonderful time, making music and making friend-ships that have lasted a life time. They may not seeas much of one another now as they did in the past,but when something like this happens they aresure to gather, to offer support and to pay tributeand to reminisce and grieve. That's what friendsare for.

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On Saturday we celebrated DH's birthday in amore festive manner and tried to brighten themood a bit for him. I made him his favouritemeal, Shake n Bake chicken, orange rice andgreen beans, while his sister made a birthdaycake. He got a few gifts, books from me, gardeningtools from his sister, and some fun cards.

And for the first time since last August my Momwas here for a visit. She was so excited!! Sheloves coming here to visit the cats, see what'sbeen going on around the house (check out thelibrary Mom!!!) look at stuff on the computer(she loves I Can Has Cheezeburger.com) andlook through my stitching stuff. Did I mentionthat she loves to see the cats???

And Rupert loves to see her. He was at the door asshe came in, and spent the rest of the visit followingher wherever she went. And when she sat down helaid down at her feet, rested his cheek on her footand went to sleep. Content.

Is this the face of a happy cat???

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Last Sunday I wasn't able to post to my blog as I normallydo because DH and I drove down to London, Ontario tosee our godson Ian perform in a play put on by hisgraduation class at Fanshaw College. We'd seen him inhigh school plays before that were written by the studentsas well as performed by them, but this was the first time thatwe'd seen him perform in a professionally written play, andwe were mezmerized.

It's so weird seeing someone you've known from babyhoodon, attended birthday parties for, made lego models with,discussed the merits of the LOTR movies with, etc playing amentally unbalanced, acloholic undercover cop. And hewas so GOOD! All the kids were actually. We are so proudof him and all the hard work he's done for the past few yearsto get to this point. And he's having the time of his life,learning and growing and getting ready to go out into thereal world and make his mark.

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I'm planning on spending this afternoon doing laundry andcatching up on blogs and stitching. Sounds good, no??? Iowe many of you a visit and comment and hope to rectifythat soon.

We've had warmer temperatures, and lots of rain in the pastfew days which we'd like to think means that Spring hasfinally arrived. But the reality is that snow and cold arestill viable options weather wise until the end of Apriland to get our hopes and expectations up at this point isjust going to lead to disappointment and frustration. Butwe'll probably let ourselves hope and dream anyways. Wealways do.

Have a great week everyone, and thanks for visiting.Hope you get lots of time to stitch, read or enjoy all yourother favourite passtimes. Take care.